A 'CLAIR-DE-LUNE' GLAZED VASE KANGXI MARK AND PERIOD

the finely potted globular body rising from a short, slightly splayed foot to a slender cylindrical neck flaring gently at the rim, covered overall in a rich, glossy, soft pale-blue glaze thinning at the everted rim and pooling around the foot, the base glazed white with a six-character mark in underglaze blue

Ralph M. Chait Galleries, New York.
Collection of David A. Berg, New York.
Christie's New York, 21st September 2000, lot 373.
Sotheby's Hong Kong, 11th April 2008, lot 2992.

One hairline crack from the rim of approximately 1 3/4 inch in length.Two restored shallow chips and minute frits to the rim. Two restored chips to the inner footring.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Vessels of this elegant form and subtle coloration display the great technical advances made at the imperial kilns in Jingdezhen at the beginning of the Qing dynasty, which saw the creation of numerous monochrome glazes. The tian lan (‘sky blue’) glaze is among the most striking innovation of the imperial kilns, and was achieved by diminishing the amount of cobalt oxide in the glaze mix. Vessels covered in this delicate glaze are often very finely potted, an indication that they were probably made in the latter years of the Kangxi reign, as suggested by Suzanne G. Valenstein, A Handbook of Chinese Ceramics, New York, 1989, p. 241.

A similar vase in the Baur collection, is illustrated in John Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Baur Collection, vol. 2, Geneva, 1999, pl. 177; one from the collection of Mrs. Enid Lodge and Mr. F. Brodie Lodge, included in the Oriental Ceramic Society exhibition Monochrome Porcelain of the Ming Manchu Dynasties, London, 1948, cat. no. 133, was sold in our London rooms, 11th July 1987, lot 205; and a slightly more globular example in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Monochrome Porcelain, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 88. See also a slightly smaller vase of this shape sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 7th October 2015, lot 3614.

The elegant silhouette of this vase is based on Song dynasty prototypes, such as a celadon-glazed vase in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, illustrated in Oriental Ceramics. The World’s Great Collections, vol. 12, Tokyo, 1977, pl. 52.